"the vast majority of the money being handed out is going to go to high income earners..."The Australia Institute was in the 2018 Budget Lockup, and subsequently have gone through the budget papers. Listen to two top economists break it down and give you the straight facts in a way that you won't hear from the pollies.>> Read the Australia Institute's full Budget Wrap 2018To see research on Australian economic policy from The Australia Institute, follow us on twitter > @TheAusInstitute Host: Deputy Director Ebony Bennett @ebony_bennettContributors:Matt Grudnoff is Senior Economist at The Australia Institute @MattGrudnoff David Richardson is the Senior Research Fellow at The Australia Institute Producer: Jennifer Macey @jennifermacey // Title Track: Jonathan McFeat pulseandthrum.comFind The Australia Institute on Twitter // Facebook

In a special "Pocket Money" episode of Follow the Money, released on the eve of the Budget, we discuss the 14 reasons why the case for the company tax cuts collapsed. See below for all the ways you can find our Budget analysis. Our original episode discussing the company tax cuts can be found here. Host: Deputy Director Ebony Bennett @ebony_bennettContributors:David Richardson, Senior Research FellowProducer: Jennifer Macey @jennifermacey // Title Track: Jonathan McFeat pulseandthrum.comFind The Australia Institute on Twitter // FacebookOn Budget NightAs is tradition, The Australia Institute will be live-tweeting the Treasurer’s Budget Speech and subsequent interview.Tune in to the Budget speech on the ABC at 7.30pm, and interviews with Leigh Sales and the Treasurer and Shadow Treasurer directly afterwards.Make sure you’re following us on twitter:The Australia Institute @TheAusInstituteBen Oquist, Executive Director @BenOquistEbony Bennett, Deputy Director @Ebony_BennettRichard Denniss, Chief Economist @RDNS_TAIRod Campbell, Director of Research @R_o_d_CBudget AnalysisWe will be emailing our annual Budget Analysis Wrap to our supporters in the days after the Budget.Make sure you get The Australia Institute 2018 Budget AnalysisSubscribe here: tai.org.au/subscribe2018 Budget Wrap PodcastDue to the overwhelming response to both our podcast Follow the Money and our traditional Budget Wrap Politics in the Pub here in Canberra, this year we’ve decided to combine the two so now everyone can now listen to our Budget Wrap via podcast.

"Burning something to boil water to create steam is a really old-fashioned technology..."The Australia Institute has spent the hot summer days monitoring when gas and coal power plants trip, taking sometimes hundreds of megawatts of power from the grid at unpredictable times. In contrast, solar power is taking pressure of the grid by delaying peak demand by several hours on days of extreme heat.Read Mark Ogge's report Can't stand the heat.>>To get alerts from Gas and Coal Watch every time a plant breaks down check out the ticker on our website or follow The Australia Institute on twitter > @TheAusInstitute Host: Deputy Director Ebony Bennett @ebony_bennettContributors:Mark Ogge is Principle Advisor at The Australia InstituteBen Oquist is the Executive Director @BenOquistProducer: Jennifer Macey @jennifermacey // Title Track: Jonathan McFeat pulseandthrum.comFind The Australia Institute on Twitter // Facebook

"Affluenza is that strange desire we feel to spend money we don’t have to buy things we don’t need to impress people we don’t know . . ."A truly modern affliction, affluenza is endemic in Western societies, encouraged by those who profit from a culture of exploitation and waste. So how do we cure ourselves? In today's episode Ebony talks to Chief Economist Richard Denniss about why we must distinguish between consumerism and materialism. >>BUY Curing Affluenza from Black Inc Books and from all good book stores. Host: Deputy Director Ebony Bennett @ebony_bennettContributors: Chief Economist Richard Denniss @RDNS_TAI Producer: Jennifer Macey @jennifermacey // Title Track: Jonathan McFeat pulseandthrum.comHibernate 'Til New Year's Day (Unreal DM Mix) by ccMixter is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial License.Find The Australia Institute on Twitter // FacebookYou can subscribe to The Australia Institute's podcast series Follow The Money on iTunes. Each episode busts some economic myths, interprets econobabble and helps you sound really smart at your next dinner party.

North Korean missile tests, resolving the South China Sea issues, ethnic cleansing in Myanmar – there is a lot happening in the defence and security policy space right, but are we engaged enough to tackle these problems in a smart way? Dr Andrew Carr of the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the ANU has written a new report for the Australia Institute I’m here for the argument: why bipartisanship on security makes Australia less safe. Andrew argues that the blind commitment to bipartisanship when it comes to security and defence restricts policy creativity and accountability, reduces public engagement with critical issues and saps national unity. Host: Deputy Director Ebony Bennett @ebony_bennett Contributors: Dr Andrew Carr, ANU @aocarr Producer: Jennifer Macey @jennifermacey // Title Track: Jonathan McFeat pulseandthrum.com Find The Australia Institute on Twitter // Facebook You can subscribe to The Australia Institute's podcast series Follow The Money on iTunes. Each episode busts some economic myths, interprets econobabble and helps you sound really smart at your next dinner party. If you like Follow The Money you might also like our chief economist, Richard Denniss' new podcast series The Lucky Country. It's a weekly podcast in which Richard digs into the economics and politics of what really matters in this Lucky country of ours. You can subscribe via the Saturday paper's website http://thesaturdaypaper.com.au/theluckycountry

Next year marks the 10th anniversary of the Global Financial Crisis. In 2008 the banks in Australia wobbled, the economy stalled, unemployment rose and the Government acted. The GFC demonstrated a failure of trickle-down economics. Ten years later, with rising populism, it is clearer now more than ever that we need a replacement to the neo-liberal economic order. What are the lessons learned from the GFC that we can use to build a new economic agenda to address inequality and inclusive growth? In this episode of Follow The Money we're presenting an edited version of the public talk former Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer Ed Balls and former Treasurer Wayne Swan gave at Melbourne Town Hall on August 22nd, presented in partnership with Guardian Australia, hosted by Guardian Australia editor Lenore Taylor. Host: Ebony Bennett, Deputy Director of The Australia Institute @ebony_bennett Contributors: // Lenore Taylor, Editor Guardian Australia @lenoretaylor // Ed Balls, Former Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer @EdBalls // Wayne Swan, Member for Lilley and former Deputy PM and Treasurer @SwannyQLD Producer: Jennifer Macey @jennifermacey // Title Track: Jonathan McFeat pulseandthrum.com Find The Australia Institute on Twitter // Facebook You can subscribe to The Australia Institute's podcast series Follow The Money on iTunes. Each episode busts some economic myths, interprets econobabble and helps you sound really smart at your next dinner party. Ed Balls toured Australia as a guest of The Australia Institute and the Chifley Research Centre.

Australia’s young people have been unfairly targeted by policies that have loaded them up with uni debts, locked them out of housing market and crippled them on the ‘flexible’ job front, and any changes that might address this imbalance are 'grandfathered' in so that they don’t affect anyone who is presently in a position of power, that's what our Chief Economist Richard Denniss argues in his essay for the June edition of The Monthly – called Grandfathering the Australian Dream.Host: Deputy Director Ebony Bennett @ebony_bennettContributors: Chief Economist Richard Denniss @RDNS_TAI // Senior Economist Matt Grudnoff @MattGrudnoff Producer: Jennifer Macey @jennifermacey // Title Track: Jonathan McFeat pulseandthrum.comFind The Australia Institute on Twitter // FacebookYou can subscribe to The Australia Institute's podcast series Follow The Money on iTunes. Each episode busts some economic myths, interprets econobabble and helps you sound really smart at your next dinner party.

The South Australian state government announced in late June 2017 that it was going to follow the Federal government and introduce a levy on the big banks. Episode 19 of Follow The Money, explains why the banks can absolutely afford the levy, why it's a good idea economically and just how small the levy really is compared to -- for example -- the salaries of the CEOs of the big 4 banks.Host: Deputy Director Ebony Bennett // @ebony_bennettContributors: Chief Economist Richard Denniss @RDNS_TAI // Senior Economist Matt Grudnoff @MattGrudnoff Producer: Jennifer Macey // @jennifermaceyTitle Track: Jonathan McFeat // pulseandthrum.comFind us on Twitter // Facebook.Australia Institute research on the bank levies: The South Australian bank levyOf levies, profits and backstops: the bank tax in contextBank levy to have minor impact on average AustraliansYou can subscribe to The Australia Institute's podcast series Follow The Money on iTunes. Each episode busts some economic myths, interprets econobabble and helps you sound really smart at your next dinner party.

Tonight, as the Treasurer rose to give his Budget address in the house, our Deputy Director Ebony Bennett grabbed our Chief Economist Richard Denniss and Senior economist Matt Grudnoff for a chat about the Budget, straight after they emerged from the Budget lockup. Thi podcast isn’t a comprehensive discussion of the Budget, but we tried to touch on some of the main items, including:the radical shift from Coalition, embracing debt and tax increasesthe levy on the banks, which will raise money but could be passed straight onto consumers the 'all package, no housing' housing affordability projectsDon't forget to sign up on tai.org.au for our comprehensive budget response tomorrow!Hosted by: Ebony Bennett - @ebony_bennett.Contributors: Richard Denniss - @RDNS_TAI & Matt Grudnoff - @mattgrudnoff Produced by: Jennifer Macey - @jennifermaceyFind us on Twitter/Facebook.

Housing Affordability is not only a massive policy failure, but is increasingly vying for the gold medal for the most spin and econobabble in Australian politics. Episode 18 of Follow The Money, takes on the vexed issue and tackles the latest bad idea that won't help housing affordability - raiding your super to pay for a deposit.Host: Deputy Director Ebony Bennett // @ebony_bennettContributors: Senior Economist Matt Grudnoff // @MattGrudnoff and Director of Research Rod Campbell // @R_o_d_CProducer: Jennifer Macey // @jennifermaceyTitle Track: Jonathan McFeat // pulseandthrum.comFind us on Twitter // Facebook.It's not secret that Federal government policy levers have been pushing housing affordability in all the wrong directions for decades. The Australia Institute have done the numbers and produced a series of reports which fed into this podcast episode:Top Gears: How negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount benefit drive up house pricesThree solutions to housing affordability other than ‘get a good job’Younger Australians big losers from negative gearing, capital gains and superannuation tax concessionsHousing affordability crisis hits retired AustraliansYou can subscribe to The Australia Institute's podcast series Follow The Money on iTunes. Each episode busts some economic myths, interprets econobabble and helps you sound really smart at your next dinner party.

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The Australia Institute is the country’s most influential progressive think tank. We conduct research on a broad range of economic, social and environmental issues in order to inform public debate and bring greater accountability to the democratic process.